MSI Z270 Gaming Pro Carbon Review

Introduction and Technical Specifications

The last time we looked at a MSI Gaming Pro Carbon it was based around the X99A chipset. With a wealth of features to attract the customisation squad, there was the obvious problem of an X99 system proving beyond the financial reach of many of us. Thankfully the launch of the 7th Generation Intel CPUs and subsequent Z270 chipset has given MSI the perfect opportunity to apply the X99 Carbon ethos to the LGA1151 socket and improve upon the features of the first Z170 Carbon.

As it can't have escaped your attention that we have a lot to cover today, rather than ramble on about what the Z270 brings to the party, let's get down to the nitty gritty.

Technical Specifications

It is quite amusing to us when manufacturers use their previous offerings as a basis for explaining why their latest one is so brilliant. It's something that first cropped up in the smartphone world, and has slowly dripped into the PC Hardware marketplace. A year ago the Z170 Carbon was advertised as the greatest thing since sliced bread, and now the Z270 Carbon is marketed by pointing out how beefy it is compared to the paltry options on the Z170. Of course technology marches on, but it still makes us chuckle. On the plus side it's perfect for those of us who might already be on board the DDR4 bandwagon to know what benefits an upgrade will bring.

Like so many Z270 motherboards the Carbon has plenty of USB 3.1, M.2 and other high bandwidth options, but perhaps the biggest change from the Z170 Carbon has to be the insane amount of lighting options available to us. RGB lighting has rapidly established itself as the technology of the moment, and MSI have embraced this in a many that is staggering.

Most Recent Comments

For the dual sound processors offering two sound sources, I can imagine a streamer's setup, where you want to have your game sound over your headset and some music in the background via speakers. When I stream sometimes and I feel like turning on some music, it's kinda tough to get the right balance. Sometimes I only want the audience to hear the music but not myself. To achieve this scenario you'd need some hard to understand software or this motherboard. Simply set the voice recognition or your mic's sensitivity to a level where it can record the music coming from the speakers, while you can completely focus on the game's sound, because your headset covers your ears from the speaker's music.

Other than that... Maybe not having to swap any cables or disable the headset in Windows' audiomixer, if you want to watch a movie with le girlfriend?Quote

Hi everyone, I'm looking to buy a new motherboard for my gaming PC. I found the MSI carbon PRO Z270 very complete ad good looking so I decided to use as boot drive the Corsair MP500 M.2 120GB. Does anyone know if these two components are compatible together and if this M.2 can be used as boot drive? thanksQuote

Hi everyone, I'm looking to buy a new motherboard for my gaming PC. I found the MSI carbon PRO Z270 very complete ad good looking so I decided to use as boot drive the Corsair MP500 M.2 120GB. Does anyone know if these two components are compatible together and if this M.2 can be used as boot drive? thanks

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